HÀ NỘI — There were no new COVID-19 cases reported anywhere in Việt Nam overnight, officials announced on Friday morning.

That means the total amount of people who have contracted coronavirus remains at 255, with 128 of those making a full recovery. More patients are expected to be given the all-clear on Friday.

On Thursday, the National Steering Committee on COVID-19 Prevention and Control said four people had tested positive for the virus.

Of those with the disease, 158 are Vietnamese nationals who have returned home from overseas and 97 others are secondary infection cases.

It is expected that 14 more people will be discharged from medical facilities on Friday after making a full recovery.

Two of the four new cases reported on Thursday had been in contact with patient 243, and the other two are Vietnamese nationals returning home from overseas.

The 252nd patient is a six-year-old Vietnamese boy from HCM City. He lived in Cambodia with his family of five, two of whom had tested positive for COVID-19 and have been under quarantine in Cambodia.

He returned to Việt Nam with two other family members through the Mộc Bài International Border Gate in the southern province of Tây Ninh on Wednesday. He was immediately quarantined at Tây Ninh Province’s General Hospital. His two other family members tested negative.

There are 74,941 people currently in quarantine across the country. Among these, 720 are being monitored at hospitals, 24,329 people are quarantined at centres or other establishments and 49,892 are self-quarantined at home.

Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc on Thursday called for the public to follow strict social distancing regulations as some people have begun leaving their homes, especially in Hà Nội and HCM City.

The Government predicted more community infections over the next few days which are related to cases with complicated travelling histories as well as earlier outbreaks at Bạch Mai Hospital in Hà Nội and Buddha Bar in HCM City.

To keep the virus at bay, people are being urged to stay at home to help prevent community transmission. — VNS